Written Answers Friday 20 October 2006

Scottish Executive

Agriculture

Alex Fergusson (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the 2006 single farm payment will be paid before the end of the calendar year.

Ross Finnie: The payment window for the Single Farm Payment Scheme in the current year, as set in European Legislation, opens on 1 December 2006, and closes on 30 June 2007. My department aims to deliver payments to producers with eligible claims as early as possible in the payment window.

  I cannot, at this stage, give you a broad brush figure of the number of claims we will pay early in the payment window, as we must assess all claims individually to ensure that they are valid. This is set in Regulation.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether all compensation for stock slaughtered during the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease outbreak has now been paid.

Ross Finnie: Arrangements are in hand for payment of a small number of outstanding cases. These claims were submitted shortly after the original valuations but were held up by a review of policy by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who fund such compensation, and a subsequent decision to cease such payments. It is intended that these claims be settled now by my department.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether appeals against the valuation of stock slaughtered during the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease outbreak can still be considered.

Ross Finnie: No, the time for such appeals has lapsed.

Historic Sites

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any potential sources of funding to provide drystane dyking and car parking facilities at sites of historic interest.

Patricia Ferguson: Historic Scotland does not have specific funds to cover provision for car parking for privately owned monuments. Drystane walling repair might be assisted through the agency’s Ancient Monuments Grants programme but only where the walls are themselves of historic importance. Funding for the repair and reinstatement of drystane walls on agricultural land is available through the Land Management Contracts Menu Scheme which is administered by the Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department. Support to farmers for building and restoration of traditional drystane walls has been available through agri-environment schemes such as the Environmentally Sensitive Area Schemes and the Rural Stewardship Scheme.

Justice

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether a suspect has the right to be cautioned before being questioned by the police, either verbally or by document.

Cathy Jamieson: Where the police have reasonable cause to suspect a particular person has committed a crime the suspect should be cautioned as this warns them that they will be asked questions but they are not obliged to answer.

Justice

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether a suspect has the right to silence on being questioned by the police.

Cathy Jamieson: A suspect has a common law right to remain silent under police questioning.

Justice

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether a suspect has the right not to self-incriminate on being questioned by the police.

Cathy Jamieson: A suspect has a common law right not to incriminate themselves under police questioning.

Ministerial Correspondence

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the Minister for Justice will reply to my letter dated 31 August 2006 regarding my constituent, Mr H Garner of Banff.

Cathy Jamieson: I replied to your letter on 18 October 2006. I apologise for the delay.

Proceeds of Crime Act 2002

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it is making in preventing convicted criminals from profiting from writing books and articles in which they discuss their crimes.

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there is any scope to extend the provisions of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to prevent convicted criminals from making profits by publishing books about their crimes.

Cathy Jamieson: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-28784 on 18 October 2006. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliaments website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Recycling

Shiona Baird (North East Scotland) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of recent concerns expressed by the paper and aluminium industries about the quality of recyclable material being sent for reprocessing, what steps it is taking to ensure that the quality of recyclate is not being compromised in any attempt to increase the quantity of recyclables being collected.

Ross Finnie: We are taking action in a number of areas to ensure that the quality of recyclate is not being compromised.

  First of all, Strategic Waste Fund awards to local authorities have included provision for education and awareness, to support local Waste Aware Scotland campaigns, co-ordinated by the Scottish Waste Awareness Group (SWAG). Clear and simple advice to householders helps minimise contamination of recyclate.

  Secondly, both the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) and REMADE Scotland carry out work on developing markets for recycled products. Their work includes liaison with local authorities and industry. REMADE, with support from WRAP, are currently undertaking a detailed market analysis for a variety of materials recovered in Scotland, and will be reporting on the state of these markets in the next few months.

  Finally, WRAP are working to develop a specification (PAS 105) for recovered paper. The introduction of a specification will help guarantee the quality of recovered paper.

Sex Offenders

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many sex offenders have received treatment and how much funding has been allocated to programmes for the treatment of such offenders in each year since 1999.

Cathy Jamieson: Community Sex Offender Programmes.

  The data on numbers on community programmes is at present held at an individual local authority rather than national level. The Executive has developed an accredited Community Sex Offender Groupwork Programme (CSOGP) which is being delivered in five schemes covering 10 local authority areas with work underway to extend coverage to a further three schemes covering 12 local authority areas.

  Ring-fenced funding to local authorities for delivery of sex offender programmes in the community is provided under Section 27 of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968. Funding allocations for the financial years 1999-2000 to date are as follows:

  

1999-2000
£361,064


2000-01
£891,501


2001-02
£956,410


2002-03
£1,126,857


2003-04
£1,533,831


2004-05
£1,687,243


2005-06
£1,711,877


2006-07
£1,711,877



  Scottish Prison Service Programmes.

  Over the period 2000 to 2006, a total of 283 STOP programmes were completed. In addition, prison based social workers provide focused individual intervention work with certain prisoners, including those who refuse to attend STOP programmes.

  Information on the costs of programme delivery specifically for sex offenders held in custody is not available. However, general information contained in the Audit Scotland report Scottish Prison Service: Correctional Opportunities for Prisoners published in January 2005 indicates the estimated levels of expenditure by SPS on correctional opportunities in SPS establishments.

Sex Offenders

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the ratio is of sex offenders recommended to enter a treatment programme to places available.

Cathy Jamieson: The annual rate of completions for the prison based Sex Offender Treatment Programme (STOP) programmes is projected to increase to 85 to 90 in 2006-07 and to 100 completions in 2007-08, compared to the 60 completions in 2004-05 and the 76 completions in 2005-06. Over the period 2000 to 2006, a total of 283 STOP programmes were completed. At present there are approximately 700 prisoners where the offence has a sexual dimension. The Integrated Case Management process determines the best time in a sentence for an individual prisoner to be offered a treatment programme.

  Data on the number of sex offenders attending community programmes, either as part of a community sentence or following discharge from custody, is at present held at an individual local authority rather than national level. However, the Executive will publish data on the number of probation orders with attendance on a sex offender programme as an additional condition, in future editions of the Statistical Bulletin Series on Criminal Justice Social Work.

Correction

The reply to question S2W-28043, which was originally answered on 11 September 2006, has been corrected: see page 9022 or http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/pqa/wa-06/wa1013.htm.

  The reply to question S2W-28764, which was originally answered on 29 September 2006, has been corrected: see page 9022 or http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/pqa/wa-06/wa1013.htm.